Electricity Generation from Low Temperature Sources

Power plants using conventional processes and unconventional fluids have a significant potential for the valorization of low and medium temperature renewable energy sources as well as waste heat from industrial, commercial or institutional installations. This review paper describes some prototypes of such power plants and summarizes some of the relevant scientific and technical literature. An analysis based on the first and second laws of thermodynamics and basic heat transfer relations is used to illustrate the operational limits and performance characteristics of these power plants.