Energy, exergy, exergoeconomic and exergoenvironmental evaluation of a combined power, cooling and steam generation system with biomass source and different gasification agents

The need to provide a suitable alternative to fossil fuels is important for environmental protection and meeting energy demand. In the present study, the integration of a molten carbonate fuel cell with a biomass gasification unit and the utilization of different gasifying agents has been considered as an effective issue in a combined power, cooling and steam generation system. A gasification unit is employed to convert biomass wood into syngas using three different gasifying agents: air, oxygen, and steam. The study evaluates and compares the impact of these gasifying agents on system performance from energy, exergy, exergoeconomic, and exergoenvironmental perspectives. The results reveal that the highest power output occurs when steam is used as the gasifying agent. Under this condition, the system achieves maximum energy and exergy efficiencies of approximately 72.07% and 45.13%, respectively. Additionally, the highest exergy destruction cost rate is recorded for the system using steam gasification, reaching 0.16 $/s. Meanwhile, the most significant environmental impact due to exergy destruction is observed in the system operating with steam gasification, with a value of 0.047 Pts/s.