WASTE HEAT-RECOVERY USING LOOPED HEAT PIPES FOR AIR COOLING

A scheme is described for the recovery of waste heat from stacks of gas turbine engines and the utilization of recovered energy for the cooling of ambient air. Relationships are summarized for the modeling of components of the cooling system. Samples are presented from performance data that is predicted by the model. Effect of size and design of system components, as well as operational variables on system performance, are discussed. It is concluded that the single most significant variable in the design of the looped heat-pipe recovery and utilization system is the geometry of the exhaust pipe of the gas turbine engine. Accordingly it is suggested that a design for the exhaust pipe of a gas turbine must consider the effects of (a) the variation of velocity of exhaust gases at different exhaust inlet temperatures, and the consequent pressure drops in the exhaust chimney pipe, and (b) the length of the exhaust pipe. The latter essentially determines the length of the heat pipe evaporator. Furthermore, the temperature drop through the air cooler is also significant, since this also influences system performance.