A Quantitative Method of Screening Working Fluids for Rankine-Cycle Power Plants

A method has been developed to relate the power-level range over which a particular Rankine-cycle working fluid is applicable as a function of rpm and turbine diameter. These results can be used in screening candidate working fluids. Typical results are presented in graphical form. They show that a fluid well-suited for one power level is not necessarily well-suited for some other power level. The analysis and typical results are applicable to single-stage turbines; however, the method can be extended to multistage designs.