Versatile Pinch Point Avoidance Recuperator for Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Power Generation Systems

A method of employing supercritical carbon dioxide as a working fluid in a power generation Brayton cycle system comprising:

• a heat source for heating a working fluid;
• a turbine in fluid communication with the working fluid exiting the heat source and having an inlet for the working fluid exiting the heat source and an outlet for the working fluid exiting the turbine;
• a compressor in fluid communication with the outlet of the turbine having an inlet for the working fluid exiting the turbine and an outlet in fluid communication with the heat source for communicating the working fluid back to the heat source;
• and a versatile pinch point avoidance recuperator comprising a plurality of tanks each housing beads of a solid filler material with a high surface area with the beads constructed of a material that will absorbs, retains and transmits heat, with the tanks connected in parallel between the compressor and the turbine with a valving arrangement that connects an inlet on at least some of the tanks to the outlet of the turbine and an outlet on the some of the tanks to the inlet of the compressor and connects an outlet on some of the other of the tanks to an inlet of the heat source and an inlet on the some other of the tanks to the outlet of the compressor so that a flow through the some of the tanks are in counter-flow relationship with the flow through the some other of the tanks with the valving system operable to alternately reverse that flow while maintaining a counter-flow relationship between the some of the tanks and the some other of the tanks;
• the method comprising:
• heating the working fluid with the heat source;
• passing the working fluid through the inlet of the turbine;
• expanding the working fluid through the turbine;
• conveying the working fluid exiting the outlet of the turbine to an inlet on the some of the tanks of the versatile pinch point avoidance recuperator;
• routing the working fluid exiting an outlet on the some of the tanks of the versatile pinch point avoidance recuperator to the inlet on the compressor;
• compressing the working fluid in the compressor;
• directing the working fluid exiting the outlet on the compressor to an inlet on the some of the other of the tanks of the versatile pinch point avoidance recuperator;
• returning the working fluid exiting an outlet on the some of the other of the tanks of the versatile pinch point avoidance recuperator to the heat source.