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Proposal and optimization of novel heat pump cycles with the Tesla turbine as an expansion device

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  • Li, Liushuai
  • An, Dou
  • Xi, Huan

Abstract

Reducing the expansion exergy destruction during the throttling process is an effective strategy for enhancing the performance of vapor-compression heat pumps. In this study, the Tesla turbine was employed as the expansion device to recover the energy, and the system configurations were accordingly redesigned. Three systems were proposed, including the Secondary Heating (SH-HP) system, which reheats the user-side fluid beyond the condensation temperature limit, the Secondary Powering (SP-HP) system, which powers the compressor to reduce electricity demand, and the Parallel Heating (PH-HP) system, tailored for flexible heat utilization. For the proposed systems, thermodynamic and economic models were first developed. The system performances were then optimized and evaluated using surrogate-assisted multi-objective optimization. The results showed that compared to the basic heat pump (BC-HP), the proposed systems exhibit marked improvements. The SP-HP system achieves an approximately 61 % increase in COP, excelling in energy efficiency. The SH-HP system, optimized for ultra-high-temperature heating, raises the user-side fluid temperature to 180.41 °C using R1233zd(E) as the working fluid, surpassing the working fluid's critical temperature limit. The PH-HP system offers superior economic performance with the lowest Levelized Cost of Heat (LCOH) as low as 0.0511 $/kW·h.

Suggested Citation

  • Li, Liushuai & An, Dou & Xi, Huan, 2025. "Proposal and optimization of novel heat pump cycles with the Tesla turbine as an expansion device," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 340(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:energy:v:340:y:2025:i:c:s0360544225049187
    DOI: 10.1016/j.energy.2025.139276
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    References listed on IDEAS

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