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Thermal plants operating on the Rankine cycle are by far the most common method of global electrical power generation. The Rankine cycle, first developed in the late 19th century, continues to this day to be one of the most important practical implementations of a heat engine. Innovation and enhancement of the cycle continues and today's emphasis is directed towards reduced carbon emissions from the combustion of fossil fuel as well as improvement of the absolute efficiency. This thesis presents an increase in the Rankine cycle efficiency through reducing the waste heat rejected from the process by the use of a thermoelectric heat pump. A thermoelectric heat pump converts a flow of electrical charge carriers to a flow of thermal energy via phonon transport through a semiconductor lattice, described by the Peltier effect. The heat flux through the device can be modulated by varying the electrical voltage and current applied to the semiconductor. Unlike a conventional heat pump, however, the direction of heat transport is determined by the direction of migration of the charge carriers. The efficiency with which the device operates is determined by complex relationship amongst the differential temperature across the device, the geometry of the semiconductor pellets forming the device and the electrical current flow. Peltier effect devices are typically used in small-scale refrigerators, on high-power lasers to aid cooling and to maintain the wavelength stability of optical communications networks. In this thesis the application of a heat pump to recover a portion of the waste thermal energy normally rejected from the Rankine cycle process after the re-condensation of feedwater in the condenser of a steam turbine is considered. Firstly, a theoretical statement of the required Coefficient of Performance for economic operation of such a system is derived. This is followed by an experimental investigation to determine if the calculated performance is available using today'

Thermal plants operating on the Rankine cycle are by far the most common method of global electrical power generation. The Rankine cycle, first developed in the late 19th century, continues to this day to be one of the most important practical implementations of a heat engine. Innovation and enhancement of the cycle continues and today's emphasis is directed towards reduced carbon emissions from the combustion of fossil fuel as well as improvement of the absolute efficiency. This thesis presents an increase in the Rankine cycle efficiency through reducing the waste heat rejected from the process by the use of a thermoelectric heat pump. A thermoelectric heat pump converts a flow of electrical charge carriers to a flow of thermal energy via phonon transport through a semiconductor lattice, described by the Peltier effect. The heat flux through the device can be modulated by varying the electrical voltage and current applied to the semiconductor. Unlike a conventional heat pump, however, the direction of heat transport is determined by the direction of migration of the charge carriers. The efficiency with which the device operates is determined by complex relationship amongst the differential temperature across the device, the geometry of the semiconductor pellets forming the device and the electrical current flow. Peltier effect devices are typically used in small-scale refrigerators, on high-power lasers to aid cooling and to maintain the wavelength stability of optical communications networks. In this thesis the application of a heat pump to recover a portion of the waste thermal energy normally rejected from the Rankine cycle process after the re-condensation of feedwater in the condenser of a steam turbine is considered. Firstly, a theoretical statement of the required Coefficient of Performance for economic operation of such a system is derived. This is followed by an experimental investigation to determine if the calculated performance is available using today'

Concentrating sunlight and focusing on smaller solar cells increases the power output per unit solar cell area. In the present study, we highlight the design of a low concentrating photovoltaic (LCPV) system and its performance in different test conditions. The system essentially consists of a reflective type 3.6× cross compound parabolic concentrator (CCPC) designed for an acceptance angle of ± 30°, coupled with square shaped laser grooved buried contact (LGBC) silicon solar cells. A heat exchanger is also integrated with the PV system which extracts the thermal energy rejected by the solar cells whilst maintaining its temperature. Indoor characterization is carried out to evaluate the system performance under standard conditions. Results showed a power ratio of 3.12 and an optical efficiency of 73%. The system is placed under outdoor environment on a south facing roof at Penryn, UK with a fixed angular tilt of 50°. The high angular acceptance of the system allows collection of sunlight over a wider range. Results under different climatic conditions are presented and compared with a non-concentrating system under similar conditions. On an average, the LCPV system was found to collect an average of 2.54 times more solar energy than a system without the concentrator.

Low concentrating photovoltaic (LCPV) systems produces higher electrical output per unit solar cell compared to typical PV systems. The high efficiency Si solar cells can be utilized with little design and manufacturing changes for these applications. However, a key barrier towards achieving economic viability and the widespread adoption of LCPV technologies is the losses related to high operating temperature. In the present study, we evaluate the performance 3D low concentration system designed for 3.6×, using a reflective Cross compound parabolic concentrator (CCPC) and a Laser Grooved Buried Contact solar cell having an area of 50*50mm2. Results demonstrate the losses occurring due to the temperature rise of the solar cell under concentration and we analyze the potential which could be utilized for low grade heating applications.

This paper presents the design, manufacture and electrical test of a novel integrated III:V low concentrator photovoltaic and thermoelectric device for enhanced solar energy harvesting efficiency. The PCB-based platform is a highly reliable means of controlling CPV cell operational temperature under a range of irradiance conditions. The design enables reproducible data acquisition from CPV solar cells whilst minimizing transient time for solid state cooling capability.

Thermal plants operating on the Rankine cycle are by far the most common method of global electrical power generation. The Rankine cycle, first developed in the late 19th century, continues to this day to be one of the most important practical implementations of a heat engine. Innovation and enhancement of the cycle continues and today's emphasis is directed towards reduced carbon emissions from the combustion of fossil fuel as well as improvement of the absolute efficiency. This thesis presents an increase in the Rankine cycle efficiency through reducing the waste heat rejected from the process by the use of a thermoelectric heat pump. A thermoelectric heat pump converts a flow of electrical charge carriers to a flow of thermal energy via phonon transport through a semiconductor lattice, described by the Peltier effect. The heat flux through the device can be modulated by varying the electrical voltage and current applied to the semiconductor. Unlike a conventional heat pump, however, the direction of heat transport is determined by the direction of migration of the charge carriers. The efficiency with which the device operates is determined by complex relationship amongst the differential temperature across the device, the geometry of the semiconductor pellets forming the device and the electrical current flow. Peltier effect devices are typically used in small-scale refrigerators, on high-power lasers to aid cooling and to maintain the wavelength stability of optical communications networks. In this thesis the application of a heat pump to recover a portion of the waste thermal energy normally rejected from the Rankine cycle process after the re-condensation of feedwater in the condenser of a steam turbine is considered. Firstly, a theoretical statement of the required Coefficient of Performance for economic operation of such a system is derived. This is followed by an experimental investigation to determine if the calculated performance is available using today'

Thermal plants operating on the Rankine cycle are by far the most common method of global electrical power generation. The Rankine cycle, first developed in the late 19th century, continues to this day to be one of the most important practical implementations of a heat engine. Innovation and enhancement of the cycle continues and today's emphasis is directed towards reduced carbon emissions from the combustion of fossil fuel as well as improvement of the absolute efficiency. This thesis presents an increase in the Rankine cycle efficiency through reducing the waste heat rejected from the process by the use of a thermoelectric heat pump. A thermoelectric heat pump converts a flow of electrical charge carriers to a flow of thermal energy via phonon transport through a semiconductor lattice, described by the Peltier effect. The heat flux through the device can be modulated by varying the electrical voltage and current applied to the semiconductor. Unlike a conventional heat pump, however, the direction of heat transport is determined by the direction of migration of the charge carriers. The efficiency with which the device operates is determined by complex relationship amongst the differential temperature across the device, the geometry of the semiconductor pellets forming the device and the electrical current flow. Peltier effect devices are typically used in small-scale refrigerators, on high-power lasers to aid cooling and to maintain the wavelength stability of optical communications networks. In this thesis the application of a heat pump to recover a portion of the waste thermal energy normally rejected from the Rankine cycle process after the re-condensation of feedwater in the condenser of a steam turbine is considered. Firstly, a theoretical statement of the required Coefficient of Performance for economic operation of such a system is derived. This is followed by an experimental investigation to determine if the calculated performance is available using today'

Thermal plants operating on the Rankine cycle are by far the most common method of global electrical power generation. The Rankine cycle, first developed in the late 19th century, continues to this day to be one of the most important practical implementations of a heat engine. Innovation and enhancement of the cycle continues and today's emphasis is directed towards reduced carbon emissions from the combustion of fossil fuel as well as improvement of the absolute efficiency. This thesis presents an increase in the Rankine cycle efficiency through reducing the waste heat rejected from the process by the use of a thermoelectric heat pump. A thermoelectric heat pump converts a flow of electrical charge carriers to a flow of thermal energy via phonon transport through a semiconductor lattice, described by the Peltier effect. The heat flux through the device can be modulated by varying the electrical voltage and current applied to the semiconductor. Unlike a conventional heat pump, however, the direction of heat transport is determined by the direction of migration of the charge carriers. The efficiency with which the device operates is determined by complex relationship amongst the differential temperature across the device, the geometry of the semiconductor pellets forming the device and the electrical current flow. Peltier effect devices are typically used in small-scale refrigerators, on high-power lasers to aid cooling and to maintain the wavelength stability of optical communications networks. In this thesis the application of a heat pump to recover a portion of the waste thermal energy normally rejected from the Rankine cycle process after the re-condensation of feedwater in the condenser of a steam turbine is considered. Firstly, a theoretical statement of the required Coefficient of Performance for economic operation of such a system is derived. This is followed by an experimental investigation to determine if the calculated performance is available using today'