Thermodynamic performance evaluation of a solar powered Organic Rankine cycle (ORC) and dual cascading vapor compression cycle (DCVCC): Power generation and cooling effect

•The proposed model improves thermal efficiency by 84.84% over the traditional system.•R245fa-R32 refrigerant pair has a 14.53% higher COP than R245fa-R114.•Low-GWP refrigerants like R1234yf and R1234ze boost COP of 55.45% over R114.•Wide operation range of solar thermal energy with higher net work and efficiency.•Additional heat exchangers boost energy-exergy efficiency and waste heat recovery. The organic Rankine cycle (ORC)−dual cascading vapor compressor cycle (DCVCC) system, being a highly efficient energy utilization technology, possesses significant potential for development. This paper presents a thermodynamic analysis of a new combined ORC and DCVCC system propelled by the solar cycle to produce electric energy and a cooling effect. An exergy-energy evaluation was conducted utilizing six distinct pairs of refrigerants due to their favorable thermodynamic properties, efficiency, environmental considerations, compatibility, safety, and regulatory compliance, namely R245fa-R114, R245fa-R1234yf, R245fa-R1234ze, R245fa-R32, R245fa-R404A, and R245fa-R134a. The fixed refrigerant pair R245fa-R114 is used in the ORC-VCC1 circuit, while the remaining pairs of refrigerant are used in the VCC2 circuit. The system modeling is done using the Engineering Equation Solver (EES) program, which takes into account all assumptions, boundary conditions, and inputs as well as the built-in thermodynamic characteristics of various refrigerants in the suggested system models. The findings show that the thermal efficiency of the proposed system exhibits an 84.84% improvement compared to a conventional ORC. This study investigates the influence of thermodynamic parameters, specifically turbine inlet temperature, turbine inlet pressure, and condensing temperature, on the overall performance of the system. The refrigerant pair of R245fa-R32 has a 14.53% higher COP compared to the R245fa-R114 pair when subjected to variations in turbine inlet temperature. A notable enhancement in thermal and exergy efficiency has been reported, exhibiting an increase of 3.03% and 2.03%, respectively, compared to the simple ORC-VCC configuration. The application of R32 in the VCC2 circuit results in a 63% enhancement in cost-effectiveness as compared to R114. However, low-GWP refrigerants like R1234yf and R1234ze boost COP by 55.45% over R114. In addition, the elevating of the condensing pressure results in a decrease in the COP, thermal efficiency, and net work. Moreover, by finding the most fa