Thermodynamic Analysis of Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion System With Different Working Fluids Available to Purchase

A thermodynamic model is developed for ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) systems. Considering the narrow temperature range in the evaporator, different refrigerants including R717, R134a and R600 were analyzed and compared under sub-critical state with practical ocean thermal conditions. The results show that larger ocean temperature differences will lead to higher evaporation pressures, and less pumping power requirements for all pumps, i.e., warm sea water pump, cold sea water pump and pumps for the working fluid. The thermal efficiency of different systems and the net power output were found to be closely related to ocean temperature difference, with a positive linear relationship. It was also found that R717 provides the highest thermal efficiency with the least pump power requirement. This working fluid could potentially be used for OTEC system development. This study provides useful insights to the design and equipment selection of OTEC systems.