Quantitative assessment of hydrogen blending in a gas turbine-based plant for supplying residential electricity, water, and cooling load: A techno-economic-environmental optimization

Heat recovery not only enhances the thermal efficiency of a thermodynamic system but also yields cost and environmental benefits. Additionally, utilizing produced hydrogen as a fuel source, when blended with natural gas, significantly diminishes CO₂ emissions. However, a dearth of existing research in the literature that addresses the simultaneous integration of heat recovery and hydrogen blending prompted the authors to propose, design, and model a multi-generation energy system. This proposed system takes into account economic and environmental considerations while incorporating hydrogen blending and heat recovery techniques. The model was developed using MATLAB to accurately calculate the system's functions, and the resulting programming code was meticulously cross-checked against literature findings. To identify the optimal operating conditions for the system, a genetic algorithm optimization approach was employed. The base case results indicated a total cost rate of 7039.4 $/h, an exergy efficiency of 41.01%, and a drinkable water production rate of 830.65 kg/s. Moreover, the optimization results demonstrated improvements in various parameters, with a reduced total cost rate of 6833 $/h, an enhanced exergy efficiency of 49.46%, and an increased drinkable water production rate of 1166.4 kg/s. The introduction of hydrogen blending led to an 8.16% decline in the total cost rate, a 1.15% reduction in CO₂ emissions, and a notable 4.6% enhancement in the overall system's exergy efficiency.