Estimation for heat loss to the working fluid in the heat exchanger of an ORC for a given concentration of gases.

Geothermal energy is the thermal energy derived from the earth's subsurface in the form of steam or hot water. It is a clean, reliable, and promising source of renewable energy. The geothermal fluid that comes to the surface through the production well extracts the heat energy from the earth's crust when it encounters magma and gets heated. However, the geothermal fluid brought to the surface contains non-condensable gases and other minerals. These gases present in the geothermal fluid reduce the heat transfer capacity and the turbine's efficiency when the steam passes through the turbine. The gases mainly constitute carbon dioxide. The paper demonstrates a process model showing the fluid flow through the heat exchangers. The input parameters are the flow rate, temperature, pressure, and gas concentration. The model is developed based on these input parameters as initial conditions. Next, the process model helps us understand the loss in heat transfer capacity of the fluid due to the presence of gases when it passed through the heat exchanger. Finally, the output parameters, including temperature and pressure at the outlet, change in concentration of gases, and heat losses, are calculated after running the process model and achieving the result. The primary focus is on knowing the heat loss to the working fluid coming out of the heat exchanger.