High temperature nuclear cogeneration utilizing supercritical CO2 for enhanced thermal efficiency

This research addresses the challenges of clean energy production for industrial applications and highlights the role of nuclear power in achieving economic, safety and environmental sustainability goals. A thermodynamic analysis of a high-temperature nuclear reactor integrating sCO2 Brayton cycle and reboiler was carried out. System performance was evaluated by varying turbine inlet temperature and compressor pressure ratio. The results show that higher reboiler CO2 inlet temperature significantly improves the power cycle efficiency up to the optimal threshold of 740°C, beyond which the efficiency improvements diminish. However, increasing turbine efficiency can significantly increase thermal efficiency, raising it from around 25% to 45%. The effect of compressor efficiency is less pronounced, with thermal efficiency increasing from 21% to 25%. The net power output increases with the turbine inlet temperature and compressor pressure ratio, with the peak temperature of 725°C and pressure ratio of 4.0, with the maximum power output of approximately 3.35MW. These insights are critical to optimize the design and operation of nuclear-driven thermal power systems to maximize efficiency and net power output.