Steam power plants represent the largest segment of the world's electricity production. With developing and foreseeable shortages of adequate water sources in the arid regions and increasing regulatory restrictions, alternate technologies are being sought for heat rejection. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has recently proposed that power plants that consume more than 7.6 x 106 L/day of water for cooling (equivalent plant capacity >250 MW) must consider alternate technologies to determine the best available technology for rejecting the waste heat. A steam condenser is an essential part of a steam power plant. Steam condensation occurs in a steam condenser using either wet cooling, dry cooling, or a combination of both. The use of wet cooling therefore results in a detrimental impact on the environment.In the current proposed work an alternate method other than water or air, for cooling the steam power plant's condenser will be investigated theoretically, numerically, and experimentally. The proposed method is a condenser-configuration using refrigerant in a closed-loop-cycle. The refrigeration will be a vapor compression cycle. The vapor compression refrigeration cycle system is a highly well-established technology forming the basis of many important industrial and agricultural and household applications.The main goal of this proposed work is to test the feasibility and verify the proposed idea of using vapor compression refrigeration cycle as a condenser coolant, thereby replacing the environmentally polluting conventional water cooling and the low efficiency and costly air cooling methods. The current proposed project will also be able to compare the use of different refrigerants on the basis of performance, cost, and environmental impact with the conventional water and air cooling systems.
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