Techno-economic analysis of a reheated humid air turbine

The purpose of this paper is to identify the economic potential of a reheated humid air turbine system for power generation applications. A parametric analysis is performed to correlate the technology level of the system with the required cost of the electricity for economic viability. The effect of fluctuations of the main cost drivers is evaluated via an uncertainty analysis. The performance of the studied reheated humid air turbine is compared against previously studied humid configurations and well established gas-steam combined cycles. The fuel cost is found to be driving the cost of electricity. The uncertainty analysis also shows the dependency of the optimum cycle design parameters upon the market prices. The analysis reveals the capability of the reheated humid air turbine to be an economically viable option for the power generation sector featuring an estimated cost of electricity 2.2% lower than simpler humid cycles, and 28% lower than established combined cycles currently in service. The outcome of the work constitutes a step forward in the understanding of the economic performance of advanced complex cycles and proves the potential of such systems for applications where high efficiency and economic performance is jointly required.