3075 -- Optimal Sizing of Cogeneration Systems PDF

Cogenerators can produce peak and intermediate load electricity if they are designed with enough storage capacity to track daily thermal loads in buildings. The thermal storage would act to buffer any mismatch between thermal loads and electric utility peak periods.

Over a wide range of technical performance characteristics and thermal load profiles, it appears that cogeneration systems having installed costs in the $500 to $1500/kW range can be economically feasible if they can be sized to take advantage of peak and intermediate electricity values in the range of 6 to 9C/kWh_e. These results are conservatively based on a fuel cost of 2C/kWh_t ($6/MMBtu). The optimal slze of such systems is often larger than the building's peak thermal load.

The analysis identified several areas where research and development might be focused. The importance of improving the efficiency of exhaust gas heat recovery will increase significantly as gas prices rise.

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