The Maximum Power Cycle Operating Between a Heat Source and Heat Sink with Finite Heat Capacities
Osama M. Ibrahim, Raed I. Bourisli
Abstract
Abstract This study aims to identify the thermodynamic cycle that produces the maximum possible power output from a heat source and sink with finite heat capacities. Earlier efforts used sequential Carnot cycles governed by heat transfer rate equations to determine the maximum power cycle. In this paper, a hypothesis is proposed where the heat capacities of the heat addition and rejection processes of the proposed maximum power cycle are assumed to match the heat source and sink, respectively. The result is a simple thermodynamic model that approximately defines the performance and shape of the proposed maximum power cycle, which are compared and verified with the shape and performance of optimized sequential Carnot cycles with closely matching results.