The dual-function ammonia-water absorption cycle converts exhaust heat from prime movers to high-value products. This new cycle excels at efficiently converting heat in the range of 250°F to 750°F to electric power, refrigeration and/or air conditioning, in interchangeable amounts depending on user needs. Considering a 1MWe gas turbine with exhaust temperature of 750°F, the absorption cycle can produce additional 400kW of power. In the refrigeration mode, the same dual-function absorption cycle produces more than 400 tons of refrigeration at 35°F, or lesser amounts down to -50°F.
The absorption cycle can be directly integrated with prime movers: turbines, micro-turbines, fuels cells, and reciprocating engines. Moreover, the cycle can be integrated with a desiccant system to supply low-level heat to regenerate the desiccant. Reject heat can also be used for domestic hot-water heating or space heating, thereby achieving extremely high overall energy conversion efficiency.
The heat-activated dual-function absorption cycle is ideally suited for 1 to 15 MWe distributed power generators: turbines, micro-turbines, fuel cells, and reciprocating engines. The mix of power and refrigeration output is automatically adjusted to meet seasonal requirements. For warm ambient conditions, part of the refrigeration can be used for turbine inlet air cooling, thereby eliminating the severe degradation in output which otherwise occurs.