Waste heat recovery system and method of operating the same

A waste heat recovery system to generate power from thermal energy contained in a hot gas stream, comprising:

• a hot gas stream flow path extending from a hot gas stream source and along which the hot gas stream flows;
• a pump;
• an expander;
• a first working fluid flow path fluidly connecting an outlet of the pump and an inlet of the expander;
• a second working fluid flow path fluidly connecting an outlet of the expander and an inlet of the pump;
• a first heat exchange section located along both the first working fluid flow path and the hot gas stream flow path to transfer heat from the hot gas stream to working fluid traveling along the first working fluid flow path;
• a second heat exchange section located along both the first working fluid flow path and the hot gas stream flow path to transfer heat from the hot gas stream to working fluid traveling along the first working fluid flow path between the pump and the first heat exchange section;
• and
• a third working fluid flow path fluidly connecting a first branch point along the first working fluid path to a second branch point along the second working fluid path to enable at least a portion of the working fluid to bypass the first heat exchange section and the expander.