The organic Rankine cycle (ORC) has been widely used to convert low-grade (300°C) thermal energy to electricity. Use of zeotropic mixtures as the working fluids improves the thermodynamic performance of ORC systems due to better matches of the temperature profiles of the working fluid and the...

Operation during the charge and discharge cycles of molten-salt thermoclines used for solar thermal energy storage depends strongly on the environmental boundary conditions to which the tanks are exposed. A comprehensive model which accounts for thermal transport in the molten-salt heat transfer...

Thermal ratcheting is a critical phenomenon associated with the cyclic operation of dual-medium thermocline tanks in solar energy applications. Although thermal ratcheting poses a serious impediment to thermocline operation, this failure mode in dual-medium thermocline tanks is not yet well...

The cyclic operation of molten-salt thermal energy storage thermoclines for solar thermal power plants is systematically investigated. A comprehensive, two-temperature model is first developed for the cyclic operation of a thermocline operating with a commercially available molten salt as the...