Energy Conversion.

V o l . 8, p p . 8 5 - 9 0 .

F e r g a m o n Pre~s, 1968.

Printed in Great B r i t a i n

The SupercriticalThermodynamicPower Cycle

E, G, FEHERt
(Received 13 January 1968)

1. Introduction

2. Description of the Cycle

Thermodynamic power cycles most commonly used

for closed cycle engines today are the Rankine Cycle and
the recuperated Brayton Cycle. Both are characterized
by two constant pressure and two isentropic processes.
The Rankine Cycle operates mainly in the saturated
region of its working fluid whereas the Brayton Cycle
processes are located entirely in the superheat or gas
region.
The simple Rankine Cycle is inherently efficient. Heat
is added and rejected isothermally and therefore the
ideal cycle can achieve over 90 per cent of Carnot
efficiency between the same temperatures. Pressure rise
in the cycle is accomplished by pumping a liquid, which
is an efficient process requiring small energy input.
The ratio of net work output to gross work in the cycle
is large. Among the limitations of the cycle are the
following:

For the thermodynamic analysis of the Supercritical

Cycle, the properties of its working fluid are represented
in Figs. 1 and 2. A pure substance (such as water or
carbon dioxide) is shown on a temperature-entropy
diagram and on an enthalpy-entropy diagram. Also

(i) The temperature range of the cycle is severely

limited by the nature of the working fluid. Adding
superheat in an attempt to circumvent this will depart the
cycle from isothermal heat addition. Increasing the
temperature range without superheat leads to excessive
moisture content in the turbines, resulting in blade
erosion.
(ii) Simple recuperator cannot be employed to recover
heat from the turbine exhaust.
(iii) Expansion ratio of the cycle is usually large,
requiring in some cases more than 30 turbine stages,

Entropy

The recuperated Brayton Cycle adds heat at constant

pressure over a temperature range. The temperature level
is independent of the pressure level. No blade erosion
occurs in the turbine. The pressure ratio is low, therefore
one or two turbine stages are adequate. A simple recuperator can recover much of the turbine exhaust heat.
Some of the limitations of the cycle are:

Fig. 1. Temperature-entropy diagram for the supercritieal

cycle.

(i) The compression process requires large energy

input, therefore the net work to gross work ratio is small.
(ii) The cycle is very sensitive to compressor efficiency
and pressure drop.
(iii) Heat transfer surfaces are large for pressure levels
that are typical for current Brayton engines.

.......

A thermodynamic power cycle has been devised which

avoids most of the problems of these cycles and yet retains
many of their advantages. This cycle operates entirely
above the critical pressure of its working fluid; it is the
Supercritical Cycle.

t Astropower Laboratory Missile and Space Systems Division,

Douglas Aircraft Co., Inc., 2121 Campus Drive, Newport Beach,
California.

,~mV'f C ~ P o i n J

--

Entropy

Fig. 2. Enthalpy-entropy diagram for the supercritical cycle.

85

86

E.~ G; FEllER .

shown are lines of constant pressure, constant enthalpy,

constant temperature, and the saturation line and critical
point.
The ideal cycle processes are shown by line segments
ab, bd, de, and ea. Segment ab represents an isentropic
compression of the subcooled liquid from pressure Pt'to
p2. Segment b d represents heat addition at constant pressure p2 to the highest temperature of the cycle at point d.
From d to e, isentropic expansion occurs from pressure
pz to pl, with accompanying work output. Heat is extracted from e to a along constant pressure line pl. A
portion of this heat, represented by enthalpy drop from
e to f at constant pressure pl, is transferred back to the
fluid, raising its enthalpy from b to c at constant pressure
p2. Net heat rejected is indicated by the enthalpy dro p
f r o m f t o a at constant pressurepl. Point a is at the lowest
temperature of the cycle and above the temperature of
the heat-receiving reservoir. Net heat input to the cycle
occurs from c to d at constant pressure p2. Net work
output is the difference between work output from d
to e and pump work input from a to b.
A pseudo-Supercritical Cycle has been employed for
steam power plants previously. In this combination of the
Rankine and Brayton Cycles the working fluid is pumped
from the saturated state to a supercritical pressure. (See
Fig. 3.) Heat is added in a constant pressure process over

3. Cycle Performance Analysis

Referring to Fig. 2, the ideal thermal efficiency of the

Supercritical Cycle is defined as
~t-

Wout _ (ha - - he) - - (ho - - ha)

Qin
h a - hc
'

(1)

where h is the value of the enthalpy at the point indicated

by the subscript.
The efficiency of the cycle is high because, (i) the pump
work is a small fraction of the total work output, and
(ii) most of the heat extracted from the cycle can be transferred back to lhe working fluid by regeneration, thus
reducing the total energy rejected from the cycle.
In the actual cycle, the greatest loss will occur in the
expansion process, which will proceed along the polytropic line d e ' instead of the isentropic line de. The
efficiency of the turbine may be defined as
et --

ha-

he"

ha - - he

--

AH~
AHt"

(2)

The total work output is reduced because of the lowered

turbine efficiency. The thermal efficiency of the cycle is
also loWered. However, some of the energy not available
as work, is available as heat and can be transferred to
the heat input process of the cycle. In other words, the
enthalpy drop he" - - he is utilized in raising the enthalpy
from he to he', thus reducing the net heat input from
ha - - he to ha - - h e .
The pressure drops in the system are reflected as an
increase in pump work. The liquid pump has high effiCiency, and the magnitude of the enthalpy difference
between ideal and actual pump work is small. The
efficiency of the pump may be defined as
ho - - ha
ev - - hb' - - ha

AHv
AH"r "

(3)

The actual thermal efficiency of a real cycle becomes

Vlat :

(ha - - he') - - (hb" - - ha)

ha - - he"

(4)

4. Regeneration

Entropy

Fig. 3. Temperature-entropy diagram for a pseudo-supercritical

cycle,
a temperature range. The same cycle, using carbon dioxide as the working fluid has been :discussed by the
Russian, V. L. Dektiarev [1], and the Italian,.G. Angelino
[2]. This CO2 cycle was discussed by the author, without
knowledge of the above works, in connection with the
initial disclosure of the Supercritical Cycle in an Engineering Report [3].

The regeneration process is essential to the achievement of high thermal efficiency in the Supercritical
Cycle. The process is more complicated than that for
the Brayton Cycle due to the large deviation of fluid
properties from the ideal in the vicinity of the critical
point. For the pure substance, the specific heat at constant
pressure increases without bounds at the critical point.
By definition, the specific heat at constant pressure is
the ratio of increase in enthalpy in a constant pressure
process to the corresponding increase in temperature,
expressed as a derivative. Symbolically,
C,=(O0~I,)~.

(5)

If the properties of a pure substance are represented

on a rectangular coordinate system, with enthalpy as the

The Supercritical Thermodynamic Power Cycle

87

where he - - he = h ! form,

hb = AHr. Expressed in another

1 -- AHv/AHt
1 + AHr/AHt"

~. =

5' ]

(7)

From this relation it is evident that ~,t can be increased

by reducing AHr.
If AH for a higher set of pressures, say 4500 and 5500
psia is plotted (see Fig. 5) a lower A H r is obtained. It is
evident that as the pressure level (above the critical

~, ~ 2OO
-* - 100

oC,)

J"

<"
7L,,3

800

'

900

',~-----lOOO

HOO

1500

1200

I ur~?clat:,rc Io[j

Fig. 4. Enthaipy-temperaturediagram--high A H r .

ordinate, temperature as the abscissa, and lines of

constant pressure are drawn, then the slope at any point
is proportional to the value Of the Specific heat. Figure 4
shows such a set of curves for water. On the critical
pressure line the maximum slope is infinite and occurs
at the critical point. The maximum slope is finite at
higher pressures and its value decreases with increasing
pressure.
To illustrate the effect of the pressure level and pressure
ratio on the regeneration process let the lower and upper
pressures Of an ideal supercritical cycle be 3500 psia and
4500 psia, respectively. In Fig. 4 the enthalpy difference
at constant temperature for these pressures is plotted as a
function of temperature and labeled AH. The constant
temperature line at the maximum point of the AH curve,
AHr, is drawn. This line intersects the 3500 psia and
4500 psia constant pressure lines at ao and b0, respectively.
Now, equal increments of enthalpy are taken on the two
pressure lines in the directions of both increasing and
decreasing enthalpy. The corresponding points are
labeled a~, bl, all, bll, a2, b2, a22, b22, etc. It can be seen
that for constant enthalpy increments in both directions
the temperature increment is increasing. The increase is
the greatest on the lower pressure line in the increasing
enthalpy direction and on the higher pressure line in the
decreasing enthalpy direction. The existence of this
positive temperature gradient allows heat transfer to
take place in the supercritical region from the lower to
the higher pressure.
Of the two aspects of the enthalpy~-temperature
relations, namely the existence of a maximum AH
between the constant pressure relation and the increasing
temperature increment with constant enthalpy increment,
the former is a detriment to cycle efficiency and the
latter is an aid in reducing recuperator size. The former
is an index of the unavailability of heat energy for
conversion to work. As such, it leads to an alternate but
equivalent definition of cycle thermal efficiency,

lit

(ha - - he) - - (hb - - ha)

(hd -- he) + (he - - he)

(ha -- he) -- (ho --

-- (ha --

he) +

(hi --

ha)
hb)'

(6)

Critical Point

~- -t'}i '~] 3 "~ - "-U0

]l IBII.IiIb!
all;

500

500

;-"/
700

600

!
800
Ternperatu re

- 900

i
1000

b
II00

i -0
1200

lF}

Fig. 5. Enthalpy-temperaturediagram--low AHr.

pressure) is increased (within undetermined limits) and

as the pressure ratio is decreased, the A H r is decreased.
The value of the untransferable enthalpy is A H r in an
ideal recuperator. At that point the AT across the recuperator is zero and theoretically an infinite surface
would be required for heat transfer. In a real recuperator
the AT has a positive value ATp~ and is called the "pinch
temperature". The surface required for heat transfer
becomes smaller as AT is increased. An increase in AT
results in an increase in A H r to some value AH~,
according to the relation
A H 'r - - A H r :

Cp-avg >( ATpi.

(8)

This relation holds where ATp, is less than 15F, which

is a practical value for real applications. Over this
range the differences between Cp_avg and the maximum
and minimum values of Cp are negligibly small.
The efficiency of the recuperator may be defined as
the ratio of the ideal and actual enthalpy differences,
AHr

er :

AH~

(9)

Using Equations (2), (3), (7) and (9), the actual thermal
efficiency of a real cycle becomes
~at

1 -- AHp/AHtete v
i-~- A-Hr-/AHteter"

(10)

5. Working Fluids
In principle, the Supercritical Cycle can be operated
with any fluid, just as a Brayton Cycle can be operated
with any gas. In practice, the choice of working fluid
controls the range of cycle operating pressures and
temperatures. Table 1 lists critical properties of some

88

E . G . FEHER
Table 1. Critical constants of working fluids

Name

Formula

Ammonia
Carbon dioxide
Hexafluorobenzene
Perfluoropropane
Sulfur dioxide
Sulfur hexafluoride
Water
Xenon

0"65 -

Critical
temperature
(F)

Critical
pressure
(psia)

271"2
87.8
460
161"4
315"5
114
705
61.9

1636
1072
402
388
1143
546
3206
853

NH3
CO2
C6F6
CaFa
SO2
SF6
H20
Xe

of the working fluids which can be used in practical

applications.
For initial investigations carbon dioxide was selected
as the working fluid for several reasons. First, its critical
pressure is one third that of water, allowing lower
operating pressures. Second, it is known to be a stable
and inert material throughout the temperature range of
interest. Third, there is a considerable body of literature
on the properties of carbon dioxide, hence cycle analysis
is based on reasonably firm data. And finally, carbon
dioxide is abundant, non-toxic and relatively inexpensive.
The thermodynamic and transport properties of carbon
dioxide were assembled from several sources, notably
from R. L. Sweigert et al. [4], G. C. Kennedy [5], D.
Price [6], D. M. Newitt et aL [7], and L. H. Chen [8].
This data covers the temperature range from 32F to
1800F and the pressure range from 0 to 500 atm.
6. Effect of Component Parameters

Inspection of Equation (7) reveals the influence on

ideal cycle efficiency of turbine work, pump work and
the unavailable energy in the regeneration process.
Figure 6 is a plot of cycle efficiency as a function of the
independent variables of Equation (7), AH~/AHt and
AHr/AHt. Superimposed on this plot are some typical
ideal carbon dioxide cycles operating between practical
temperature and pressure limits. It is evident that typical
values of AHp/AHt range from 0.07 to 0.20 and that
the values of AHr/AHt usually lie between 1/3 and 1.
Figure 7 shows the change in all variables of Equation
1-

0.8

P~IPI =2"2"~
~

-0"8

0.6 f

f
-0"5

~, 0.55.

g
Turbine InldTemp, ).300OF
0"5- - Pump Inlet Temp, 6~'F
Pump Inlet Press, L~O00psia
Cycle Press Drop - 0
q-%-er.l
Cnrn0t Efficleney- 0.70
0.45- -W0rklng Fluid: C02

-0.4

-0-2

0.41"5

-O
3.5

2
2.5
3
Pump Discharge Pressure
Pump inlet Pressure
.

Fig. 7. Cycle efficiency vs. pressure ratio.

(7) as a function of pressure ratio, for a pump inlet

pressure of 2000 psia. Ideal cycle efficiency is also
compared to Carnot efficiency. The highest efficiency
occurs for a pressure ratio of more than 3.5, but it is
significant that the efficiency remains almost constant
down to a pressure ratio of 2.
The difference between ideal and actual thermal
efficiencies as represented by Equations (7) and (10),
respectively, is due to the efficiencies of the three major
components of an engine operating on the Supercritical
Cycle. These components are the pump, turbine and
recuperator.
Figure 8 shows the recuperator efficiency and cycle
efficiency as a function of pressure ratio and pinch
temperature ATtn. Here the degrading influence of the

TurbineInletTemp.
1600%- u
1200F- o
800F=~ - -

~P21PI *.I'25

'0.6

~0"4

, o,2.~
1
O"

0.2

0"4
0.6
Z~Hptz' ~Ht

O.B
F i g . 8.

Fig. 6. Cycle efficiency vs. pump work to turbine work ratio.

1.5

2
2"5
Pump Discharge Pressure
Pump Inlet Pressure

3"5

Cycle efficiency and recuperator efficiency vs. pressure ratio

and pinch temperature.

The Supercritical Thermodynamic Power Cycle

shown in Fig. 10. Peak cycle efficiency occurs at progressively lower pressure ratios as component efficiencies
decrease.
In a practical engine, the total pressure drop around
the cycle also has a degrading effect on cycle efficiency.
Total pressure drop can be referred to the pump as
increase in pump pressure ratio over the turbine pressure
ratio.
Symbolically
APc~ = APv -- APt
(11)

0,8-

Turbine Inlet Temp, - ~300F . ~

Pump Inlet Temp, - 58 F
0.7- Turbine Inlet Press, 40(X)psia Turbine Outlet Press, - 20(]0psia
=CyclelPress" Drop- 0 _ ~
er
0.6- WorkingFluid: CO2

0.4"G

89

rbin (ep = 1)

0.3-

and expressed as a ratio,

(3.2 ~ - - ~ _ _
0.1

APp

APt

APt

I.

(12)

The effect of increasing pressure drop on cycle efficiency

at several pump and turbine efficiencies is shown in
Fig. 11.

0-

0"2
0,4
0,6
0,8
Turbine and PumpEfficiency

APey

Fig, 9. Cycle efficiency vs. turbine and pump efficiency.

recuperator efficiency on cycle efficiency is shown

quantitatively. Increasing AT~ represents decreasing size
recuperators. It is to be noted that the higher the pinch
temperature, the more marked the effect of pressure
ratio on cycle efficiency.
The effect of pump and turbine efficiencies is shown
in Fig. 9. As would be expected, the pump efficiency h a s
the smaller effect, producing less than 10 per cent
degradation in cycle efficiency for a drop from 100 per
cent to 60 per cent pump efficiency. The effect of turbine
efficiency is similar to that for a regenerated Brayton
Cycle.
The combined effect on cycle efficiency of the three
component efficiencies as a function of pressure ratio is

Turbine Inlet Temp. 1300OF

Pump Inlet Temp. - 68F
Turbine Inlet Press. - 4000psia
Turbine Outlet Press, - 2000psia
0,6 - - - O r . ,90
Pincll Temp. - 8OF(Approx.)
CarnotEfficiency - 0,70
Working Fluid: CO2

i
~ e t - ep 1 ]

0.55

/ - - e o e = 0.9
~

0,5

0.45
i

~ , ~

0.4 ~

Fet=ep:0"7

!
~

0.025

0.05

0.35

J
0.075
~P

CyclePressure Drop, ~ -

0,1

Fig. 11. Cycle efficiency vs. cycle pressure drop.

o.6-~

!- ~

I !

I
App i

[CyclePress'Drp"~t "1
.31

0'35 ~
r

1:5

z
2;5
3
Pump DischargePressure
Pump Inlet Pressure

3;3

Fig. 10. Cycle efficiency vs. pressure ratio and component

efficiency.

o . 3 ~
I000

----~

nlet Press. = 3000psie i

Turbine OutletPress, = 2000psia
Pump Inlet Temp. - 68OF
et ~

ep = e r

- 0.8

~,'orkmg
Fluid: CO2

1100 1200 1300 1400 1500

Turbine Inlet Temperature,OF

1600

Fig. 12. Cycle efficiency vs. turbine inlet temperature.

90

E . G . FEHER

o.~

--~-!__

0"45

The reasons for the neglect of the Supercritical Cycle

until now are not known. It can be conjectured that its
introduction to use has been delayed by the engineering
requirements of some of the components. It is clear,
however, that the level of today's technology is adequate
for the successful practical utilization of the Supercritical
Cycle.

~-,

,~Pp

~_

0.35---

,/
I//

'

~/~1~/~
o-/,1 /

'l--',t

I
0.3-

Nomenclature

Turbine InletTemp. !

0.2~-

Critical Temperature

.2 .....
40

60

80

Cp

Turbine Inlet Press. - 30~Opsia I

Turbine Outlet Press. - 2000 psiaj
~ et - e. - e r - 0-8
--$ .....
d
! Worki~n~j Fluid. CO-~
I

100

120

140

160

180

Pump Inlet Temperature, OF

Fig. 13. Cycle efficiency vs. pump inlet temperature.

Among the several cycle parameters that influence

cycle efficiency there remains the turbine and pump
inlet temperatures to consider. The effect of turbine inlet
temperature on cycle efficiency at several cycle pressure
drops is shown in Fig. 12. The variation is much the
same as for the regenerated Brayton Cycle. Figure 13
shows the effect of pump inlet temperature on cycle
efficiency at several cycle pressure drops. The cycle
efficiency variation here is quite different from that of
a Brayton Cycle. At temperatures lower than the critical
temperature the effect is small. A change of 40F in
pump inlet temperature causes a 1 percentage point
change in cycle efficiency. At temperatures higher than
about 15F above the critical temperature the effect is
suddenly large. A change of about 8F causes a 1 percentage point change. At temperatures farther above the
critical temperature the cycle behaves much as a high
pressure Brayton Cycle because the working fluid there
is a high density compressible gas.

7. Conclusion
The Supercritical Cycle offers the followfng characteristics, which are desirable in a practical application.
High thermal efficiency, low volume to power ratio, no
blade erosion in the turbine, no cavitation in the pump,
single stage turbine and pump, single phase fluid in the
heat rejection process, and insensitivity to compression
efficiency.
Some applications for a supercritical engine are:
electric power generation for space,
terrestrial electric power generation (stationary and
portable),
shaft power for marine propulsion (surface and
sub-surface).
With carbon dioxide as the working fluid and a
nuclear reactor as the heat source, the supercritical
engine can be a compact, portable electric power
generator.

Cp-avg
e

h
P

Qin
T
Wout
~Tat
r/ey
~Tit

AH
AH'
AT
AT~

specific heat at constant pressure

average specific heat at constant pressure
component thermal efficiency
enthalpy
pressure
heat input
temperature
work output
actual thermal efficiency
cycle thermal efficiency
ideal thermal efficiency
ideal enthalpy difference
actual enthalpy difference
temperature difference
pinch temperature (difference)

Subscripts
a to f
state points
p
pump
r
recuperator
t
turbine
Superscripts
'
actual point or process (as opposed to ideal)
Acknowledgments Work presented herein was conducted at the
Astropower Laboratory, Missile and Space Systems Division,
Douglas Aircraft Company, Inc. under company-sponsored
Research and Development funds.

References
[1] V. L. Dekhtiarev, On designing a large, highly economical
carbon dioxide power installation. Elecrtichenskie Stantskii,
5: 1-6, May 1962.
[2] G. Angelino, Perspectives for the Liquid Phase Compression Gas
Turbine. ASME Paper No. 66--GT-111, 13-17 March 1966.
[3] E. G. Feher, Supercritical Thermodynamic Cycles for External
and Internal Combustion Engines. Astropower, Inc. Engineering
Report May 1962.
[4] R. L. Sweigert, P. Weber and R. L. Allen, Ind. Engng. Chem.
38, 185 (1946).
[5l G. C. Kennedy, P - V - T relations in CO2 at elevated temperatures and pressures. Am. J. Sci. 2$2, 225-241 (1954).
[6] D. Price, The Thermodynamic Properties of Carbon Dioxide up
to 1000C and 1400 bars. Navord Report 3846, Nov. 1954.
[7] D. M. Newitt, N. V. Pal, N. R. Kuloor and J. A. W. Huggill,
Thermodynamic Functions of Gases, Vol. 1 tEd. F. Din). Butterworth, London (1956).
[8] L. Chela, Thermodynamic and transport properties of gaseous
carbon dioxide, in the A.S.M.E. book Thermodynamic and
Transport Properties of Gases, Liquids and Solids. McGraw-Hill

(1959).