Multiaspect analysis and optimization of a power and cooling cogeneration plant integrated with a multilevel waste heat recovery system

This study focuses on the development and improvement of a new combined power and cooling system called the power-cooling cogeneration system (PCCS). The PCCS incorporates a tri-tier waste heat recovery system that includes an organic Rankine cycle (ORC) system and an ejector-driven refrigeration mechanism. The cogeneration system design incorporates a thorough assessment of thermodynamic efficiency, cost-efficiency, and environmental consequences. A dual-objective optimization technique is developed to decrease expenses while simultaneously improving exergy efficiency. In addition, the complex behavior of PCCS is compared to a standard system that uses a one-stage recovery-ORC system and a compressor-based refrigeration approach. Also, the effectiveness of the PCCS was evaluated through the utilization of several environmentally friendly refrigerants. Environmental evaluations employ two metrics: total equivalent-warming impact (TE-WI) and life cycle-climate performance (LC-CP), emphasizing substantial reductions in environmental harm through improved waste heat recovery. The results demonstrate that the R1234-yf refrigerant achieves the best possible performance in both configurations, resulting in a significant increase of roughly 10.1% in exergetic efficiency compared to the standard system. Simultaneously, the PCCS experiences a decrease in exergy loss and annual costs of around 7.25% and 21.16%, respectively, as compared to the baseline. Incorporating an ejector into the refrigeration cycle has the potential to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by up to 11.41 × 10⁶ kg.