Process and system for recovery of energy from geothermal brines and other hot water sources, which comprises direct contact heat exchange between the brine or hot water, and a hydrocarbon working fluid, e.g. n-butane, in a heat transfer column, the heat transfer column being operated at or above the critical pressure of the working fluid, and the hot brine or hot water feed being at a temperature at or above the critical temperature of the working fluid. The heated working fluid exiting the top of the heat transfer column is expanded through an expander to produce work. The discharge from the expander is cooled to condense working fluid which is separated in an accumulator, from condensed water vapor present in the working fluid, and the condensed working fluid is pressurized and fed back to the heat transfer column. Cooled brine or water from the bottom of the heat transfer column and water from the accumulator are fed to a flashing device such as a flash drum operated at a pressure less than that in the accumulator, and the working fluid flashed off is compressed and returned to the cooler at the expander discharge, for condensation and recovery. Uncondensible gases plus working fluid losses are vented from the accumulator. Cold brine or water is discharged from the flashing means such as the flash drum, and any scale formed in the heat transfer column is discharged from the bottom thereof. Alternatively, if the flash drum is employed as a stripping column, a portion of the vent gas from the accumulator can be recycled as stripping gas to the stripping column for recovery of working fluids therefrom. Preferably, the feed brine or hot water is degassed prior to entry into the heat transfer column, and such degassing combined with proper control of accumulator pressure provides an economic balance between energy recovery in the system and working fluid loss in the vent gas from the accumulator.
Disclosed is an apparatus for continuous measurement of the proportion of relatively non-condensable gases in a flow of mixed gases such as geothermal steam. The apparatus is an open system which detects the proportion of relatively non-condensable gases in a sample flow continuously. The sample flow is condensed and supplied in a tube which conditions the sample flow to consist of a series of segments of condensate and segments of uncondensed gases. The sensor senses the relative volume of the condensate and the uncondensed gases. The data processing means receives the output of the sensor and calculates the proportion of non-condensable gases in the flow of mixed gases. In the preferred embodiment, the sensor optically detects the ratio of the volume of the condensate to the volume of uncondensed gases. Also disclosed are applications of the apparatus for supplying the continuous measurement of the proportion of non-condensable gases in a flow of mixed gases for use in the monitoring of geothermal steam supplied to an end user.
A room temperature heat engine, wherein only one pipe structure for connecting a high pressure part to a low pressure part, which is a fatal structural defect of the room temperature heat engine for decorative toys (water drinking bird, peace bird) which merely produces a weak and small mechanical energy, is improved so as to produce much powerful mechanical energy for practical use of the engine, no energy source being required because the energy used for power generation is a beat obtained from the atmospheric temperature, the high and low temperature parts are connected to each other through at least two pipes, the high temperature and low temperature parts are formed in a stationary large-sized structure, two pipes are used exclusively for a gas-only pipe and a liquid-only pipe, and a turbine wheel is installed in the fluid-only pipe so as to turn the waterwheel under a fluid flow from the low temperature part for power generation.
