Experimental study on a resorption system for power and refrigeration cogeneration

Energy conversion technologies, especially for power generation and refrigeration technologies driven by the low temperature heat, are gathering the momentum recently. This paper presents a novel resorption system for electricity and refrigeration cogeneraion. Compared with adsorption refrigeration system, resorption refrigeration is characterized as safety and simple structure since there is no ammonia liquid in the system. The cogeneration system is mainly composed of three HTS (high temperature salt) unit beds; three LTS (low temperature salts) unit beds, one expander, three ammonia valves, two oil valves, four water valves and connection pipes. Chemical working pair of MnCl2–CaCl2–NH3 is selected. Since scroll expander is suitable for small type power generation system, it is chosen for expansion process. 4.8 kg MnCl2 and 3.9 kg CaCl2 impregnated in expanded natural graphite treated with sulfuric acid (ENG-TSA) are filled in the cogeneration system. Experimental results show that maximum cooling power 2.98 kW is able to be obtained while maximum shaft power is about 253 W with 82.3 W average value. The cogeneration system can be utilized for the heat source temperature lower than 170 °C. Total energy efficiency increases from 0.293 to 0.417 then decreases to 0.407 while exergy efficiency increases from 0.12 to 0.16.