RANKINE CYCLE: THE IDEAL CYCLE

FOR VAPOR POWER CYCLES

Many of the impracticalities associated with the Carnot cycle can be eliminated
by superheating the steam in the boiler and condensing it completely in the
condenser. The cycle that results is the Rankine cycle, which is the ideal cycle
for vapor power plants. The ideal Rankine cycle does not involve any internal
irreversibilities.

The simple ideal Rankine cycle. 1

Energy Analysis of the Ideal Rankine Cycle
Steady-flow energy equation

The efficiency of power plants in

the U.S. is often expressed in
terms of heat rate, which is the
amount of heat supplied, in Btu’s,
to generate 1 kWh of electricity.
The thermal efficiency can be interpreted
as the ratio of the area enclosed by the
cycle on a T-s diagram to the area under
the heat-addition process.
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DEVIATION OF ACTUAL VAPOR POWER
CYCLES FROM IDEALIZED ONES
The actual vapor power cycle differs from the ideal Rankine cycle as a
result of irreversibilities in various components.
Fluid friction and heat loss to the surroundings are the two common sources
of irreversibilities. Isentropic efficiencies

(a) Deviation of actual vapor power cycle from the ideal Rankine cycle.
(b) The effect of pump and turbine irreversibilities on the ideal Rankine cycle.
3
HOW CAN WE INCREASE THE EFFICIENCY OF THE
RANKINE CYCLE?
The basic idea behind all the modifications to increase the thermal efficiency
of a power cycle is the same: Increase the average temperature at which heat is
transferred to the working fluid in the boiler, or decrease the average
temperature at which heat is rejected from the working fluid in the condenser.

Lowering the Condenser Pressure (Lowers Tlow,avg)

To take advantage of the increased
efficiencies at low pressures, the condensers
of steam power plants usually operate well
below the atmospheric pressure. There is a
lower limit to this pressure depending on the
temperature of the cooling medium
Side effect: Lowering the condenser
pressure increases the moisture content of
the steam at the final stages of the turbine.
The effect of lowering the
condenser pressure on the
ideal Rankine cycle.
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 Superheating the Steam to High Temperatures
(Increases Thigh,avg)
Both the net work and heat input
increase as a result of superheating
the steam to a higher temperature.
The overall effect is an increase in
thermal efficiency since the average
temperature at which heat is added
increases.
Superheating to higher temperatures
decreases the moisture content of the
steam at the turbine exit, which is
desirable.
The temperature is limited by
The effect of superheating the metallurgical considerations. Presently
steam to higher temperatures the highest steam temperature allowed
on the ideal Rankine cycle. at the turbine inlet is about 620°C.

prepared by Prof. Jagdish S. Talpada Simple Thermal Power Plant 5

Increasing the Boiler Pressure (Increases Thigh,avg)
For a fixed turbine inlet temperature, Today many modern steam power
the cycle shifts to the left and the plants operate at supercritical
moisture content of steam at the pressures (P > 22.06 MPa) and
turbine exit increases. This side have thermal efficiencies of about
effect can be corrected by reheating 40% for fossil-fuel plants and 34%
the steam. for nuclear plants.

The effect of increasing the boiler

A supercritical Rankine cycle.
pressure on the ideal
prepared by Prof. Jagdish S. Talpada Rankine cycle.
Simple Thermal Power Plant 6
 THE IDEAL REHEAT RANKINE CYCLE
How can we take advantage of the increased efficiencies at higher boiler pressures
without facing the problem of excessive moisture at the final stages of the turbine?
1. Superheat the steam to very high temperatures. It is limited metallurgically.
2. Expand the steam in the turbine in two stages, and reheat it in between (reheat)

The ideal reheat Rankine cycle.

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The single reheat in a modern power
plant improves the cycle efficiency by 4 to
5% by increasing the average
temperature at which heat is transferred
to the steam.
The average temperature during the
reheat process can be increased by
increasing the number of expansion and
reheat stages. As the number of stages is
increased, the expansion and reheat
processes approach an isothermal
process at the maximum temperature.
The use of more than two reheat stages
is not practical. The theoretical
improvement in efficiency from the
second reheat is about half of that which The average temperature at which
results from a single reheat. heat is transferred during
The reheat temperatures are very close reheating increases as the
or equal to the turbine inlet temperature. number of reheat stages is
increased.
The optimum reheat pressure is about
one-fourth of the maximum cycle
pressure.
prepared by Prof. Jagdish S. Talpada Simple Thermal Power Plant 8
THE IDEAL REGENERATIVE RANKINE CYCLE
Heat is transferred to the working fluid
during process 2-2’ at a relatively low
temperature. This lowers the average
heat-addition temperature and thus the
cycle efficiency.
In steam power plants, steam is extracted
from the turbine at various points. This
steam, which could have produced more
work by expanding further in the turbine, is
used to heat the feedwater instead. The
device where the feedwater is heated by
regeneration is called a regenerator, or a
feedwater heater (FWH).
The first part of the heat-addition A feedwater heater is basically a heat
process in the boiler takes place at exchanger where heat is transferred from
relatively low temperatures. the steam to the feedwater either by
mixing the two fluid streams (open
feedwater heaters) or without mixing them
(closed feedwater heaters).
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Open Feedwater Heaters
An open (or direct-contact) feedwater
heater is basically a mixing chamber,
where the steam extracted from the
turbine mixes with the feedwater exiting
the pump. Ideally, the mixture leaves
the heater as a saturated liquid at the
heater pressure.

The ideal regenerative Rankine cycle with an open feedwater heater.

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Closed Feedwater Heaters
Another type of feedwater heater frequently used in steam power plants is
the closed feedwater heater, in which heat is transferred from the
extracted steam to the feedwater without any mixing taking place. The two
streams now can be at different pressures, since they do not mix.

The ideal regenerative Rankine cycle with a closed feedwater heater.

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EXAMPLE 10–1 The Simple Ideal Rankine
Cycle

• Consider a steam power plant operating on

the simple ideal Rankine cycle.
• Steam enters the turbine at 3 MPa and
350°C and is condensed in the condenser
at a pressure of 75 kPa. Determine the
thermal efficiency of this cycle.
Solution

F
Schematic and T-s diagram for Example 10–
1.
 State 1:
p1 = 75 h1 = hf @ 75 kPa = 384.44 kJ/kg
Sat.
kPa
liquid

State 2
} v1 = vf @ 75 kPa = 0.001037 m3/kg

p2 = 3 MPa
wpump,in = v1 (p}
2 – p1)= 0.001037 m /kg [(3000-75) kPa]
3

= 3.03 kJ/kg
h2 = h1+ wpump,in = (384.44+ 3.03)kJ/kg= 387.47
kJ/kg
State 3:
p3 =3 h3 = 3116.1
T 3 = 350 
MPa
} s3 = 6.745
kJ/kg
C kJ/kg.K
State 4:
75 kPa (sat. Mixture

}
sf = 1.2132 kJ/kg.K , sg= 7.4558
kJ/kg.K hf = 388.44 kJ/kg , hg= 2662.4
kJ/kg
s4 = s3
x4 = (s4 - sf)/(sg – sf) =(6.745 - 1.2132)/(7.4558
-
1.2132)= 0.8861
 h4 = hf + x4 (hg – hf) = 384.44 + 0.8861 (2662.4
8- 4.44) = 2403.0 kJ/kg
Thus, qin = h3 – h2 = 3116.1 - 387.47 kJ/kg =
2728.6 kJ/kg
and, qout = h4 – h1 =2403.0 - 384.44 kJ/kg = 2018.6 kJ/kg
and, th = 1 – (qout /qin ) = 1 – (2018.6 / 2728.6) = 0.260
or 26 %
The thermal efficiency; th can also be determined from
wturb,out h3-h4
713.1
kJ/kg
w =w
net turb,out – wpump,in =(713.1– 3.03) kJ/kg
710.07 kJ/kg =

th = wnet /qin = 710.07 / 2728.6 = 0.260 or 26

%
The Carnot thermal efficiency; th, Carnot operating
between the two temperature limits, Tmax = T3 = 350  C=
350 + 273 = 623 K & Tmin = T1 = 91.76  C=
91.76
+ 273 = 364.76 K &
But, th, Carnot = 1 – (Tmin / Tmax) = 1 – (364.76 / 623 ) =

0.415 or 41.5 %
It is clear that the thermal efficiency; th of simple
ideal Rankine cycle (= 26 %) is less than the Carnot
thermal efficiency; th, Carnot operating between the
two temperature limits, (= 41.5 %)
(This is the steam power plant discussed in
previous example except that the condenser
pressure is lowered to 10 kPa. The thermal
efficiency is determined in a similar manner:
 State 4:
p4 = 10 kPa (sat. Mixture)
sf = 0.6492 kJ/kg.K , sg= 8.1488
kJ/kg.K hf = 191.81 kJ/kg , hg= 2583.9
kJ/kg
s4 = s3
x4 = (s4 -sf )/(sg– sf ) =(6 .745 - 0 .6492 )/(8. 1488
0.6492 )=-0.8128
h4 = hf + x4 (hg – hf) = 191.81 + 0.8128
(2583.9 -
191.81) = 2136.1 kJ/kg
Thus, qin = h3 – h2 = 3116.1 – 194.83 kJ/kg
2921.3 =
kJ/kg
and, qout = h4 – h1 =2136.1 - 191.81 kJ/kg = 1994.3 kJ/kg
and, th = 1 – (qout /qin ) = 1 – (1994.3 / 2921.3 ) =
0.334 or 33.4 %
T-s diagrams of the three cycles discussed
(a) This is the steam power plant discussed in
Example 10–1, except that the condenser
pressure is lowered to 10 kPa. The thermal
efficiency is determined in a similar manner:
 State 4:
p4 = 10 kPa (sat. Mixture)
sf = 0.6492 kJ/kg.K , sg= 8.1488
kJ/kg.K hf = 191.81 kJ/kg , hg= 2583.9
kJ/kg
s4 = s3
x4 =
= 0.8128
h4 = hf + x4 (hg – hf) = 191.81 + 0.8128
(2583.9 -
191.81) = 2136.1 kJ/kg
Thus, qin = h3 – h2 = 3116.1 – 194.83 kJ/kg
2921.3 =
kJ/kg
and, qout = h4 – h1 =2136.1 - 191.81 kJ/kg = 1994.3 kJ/kg
and, th = 1 – (qout /qin ) = 1 – (1994.3 / 2921.3 ) =
0.334 or 33.4 %
(b) States 1 and 2 remain the same in this case,
and the enthalpies at state 3 (3 MPa and 600°C) and
state 4 (10 kPa and s4 = s3) are determined to be
Therefore, the thermal efficiency increases from 33.4
to 37.3 percent as a result of superheating the steam
from 350 to 600°C. At the same time, the quality of
the steam increases from 81.3 to 91.5 percent (in
other words, the moisture content decreases from
18.7 to 8.5 percent).
(c) State 1 remains the same in this case, but the
other states change. The enthalpies at state 2 (15
MPa and s2 =s1), state 3 (15 MPa and 600°C),
and state 4 (10 kPa and s4 = s3) are determined in a
similar manner to be
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