Optimal Molecular Design of Organic Working Fluids for Low-Temperature Fuel Cell Efficiency Enhancement

FRANCESCONI, J.; PÉREZ CORREA, I

Foz de Iguazu

Simposio; HYPHOTESIS XIV; 2019

Parque Tecnológico Itaipu

This work analyses the possibility of recovering waste heat by means of an organic Rankine cycle (ORC) coupled with a low-temperature fuel cell in order to enhancement their energetic efficiency. Joback method, for the working fluid porperties prediction, is implemented as a mixed-integer nonlinear (MINLP) mathematical programming problem. This methodology allows finding an organic fluid for the ORC that maximizes the energy recovery. A posteriori validation using a process simulation tool showed that the mathematical model tends to overpredict the thermal efficiency of the system.