Abstract
In this paper, some key aspects and definitions of exergy are presented, and practical examples are given in order to highlight its usefulness in design, analysis and performance improvement for various types of energy processes for better environment and sustainable development. The relations between exergy, sustainability and environmental impact are illustrated to show how improving the performance of the process through exergy efficiency affects the environmental impact and sustainable development. Both exergy and energy efficiencies for various systems/processes are also studied for comparison purposes.
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Abbreviations
- c p :
-
Specific heat (kJ/kg·K)
- COP:
-
Coefficient of performance
- E :
-
Energy (kJ)
- Ex :
-
Amount of exergy (kJ)
- Ex destroyed :
-
Exergy destruction (kJ)
- \( \dot Ex \) :
-
Rate of exergy (kW)
- h :
-
Enthalpy (kJ/kg)
- m :
-
Mass (kg)
- \( \dot m \) :
-
Mass flow rate (kg/s)
- N :
-
Mole number (kmol)
- P :
-
Pressure (kPa)
- Q :
-
Amount of heat transfer (kJ)
- \( \dot Q \) :
-
Rate of heat transfer (kW)
- s :
-
Entropy (kJ/kg · K)
- S gen :
-
Entropy generation (kJ/K)
- T :
-
Temperature (kJ/kg)
- T af :
-
Adiabatic flame temperature (K)
- u :
-
Internal energy (kJ/kg)
- v :
-
Specific volume (m3/kg)
- V :
-
Volume (m3)
- \( \dot V \) :
-
volume flow rate (m3/s)
- W :
-
Amount of work (kJ)
- \( \dot W \) :
-
Rate of work or power (kW)
- η th :
-
Thermal efficiency
- η ex :
-
Exergy (second-law) efficiency
- ψ :
-
Flow exergy (kJ/kg)
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Acknowledgement
The authors are grateful for the support provided for this work by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.
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Kanoglu, M., Dincer, I. & Cengel, Y.A. Exergy for better environment and sustainability. Environ Dev Sustain 11, 971–988 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-008-9162-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-008-9162-3